Missouri resident contracts measles

A Warren County resident is being treated after contracting measles while attending a recent youth conference in Maryland. The State Health Department says meeting organizers are working with public health officials to notify everyone who attended the meeting of the potential exposure to the measles virus. The Department adds it has identified 11 other Missouri residents who attended the conference and might have been exposed.

The unidentified individual, who had never been vaccinated against measles, is reported to be improving. At this time, the Missouri patient is the only confirmed case of measles linked to the youth conference held in Maryland. The 11 other Missouri residents who attended the conference reside throughout the state, including the Kansas City and St. Louis metro areas and in rural Missouri.

In recent years, Missouri has averaged one to two cases of measles per year.